Chapter 11

Acids and Bases

In order to do well on the SAT Chemistry Subject Test, you’ll need to know a
few things about acids and bases, including what they are, how they behave in
water, and how they react with each other.

Sometimes water molecules split apart to form H+ (a hydrogen ion) and OH− (a
hydroxide ion). An acid is anything that increases the H+ concentration of the
solution; a base is anything that increases the OH− concentration. How, why, and
the degree to which this happens will be the focus of this chapter.